Anti-Diuretic Hormone

The pituitary gland is separated into two sections – the anterior pituitary and the posterior pituitary. The gland is located at the base of the brain and secretes many different hormones. One – from the posterior gland – is called Vasopressin. It is also called anti-diuretic Hormone (ADH).

When specialized cells in the body sense an increase in the blood ratio of particles such as sodium, urea, and glucose to the water content, the posterior pituitary gland secretes ADH to normalize that ratio.

Too many particles cause water within the cells all over the body to dehydrate. Too few particles, and cells in the body will swell and burst.

Depending on circumstances such as the ambient humidity and temperature, exercise, and diet, when ADH works properly, the kidneys of the healthy adult excrete approximately one to two quarts of water each day through urination.

When ADH does not work properly – things go terribly wrong.

Diabetes Insipidus (not to be confused with Diabetes Mellitus – a blood sugar disease) is a malfunction of ADH secretion. In Diabetes Insipidus, the person does not have enough hormone to retain body fluid. Without enough ADH, the person’s kidneys are unable to retain fluid, and therefore excretes from two to twenty quarts of water each day.

Two to Twenty quarts.

That’s up to five gallons – ten times the normal water loss of the healthy person. Without rapid and adequate treatment, the person will quickly die from dehydration.

Which brings us again to the question of slow evolution or special and sudden creation.

Either we are incredibly lucky that our pituitary gland evolved at the same time as our kidneys, and the anti-diuretic hormone . . . or, the first man and woman were created with them each intact and at the same time.

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